Who taught you to speak English? Your parents, while you were a child? Your teacher at school? Perhaps even the BBC as a grown-up. Whoever it was, somehow you have developed an understanding of what is rapidly becoming a truly global language.
There are now about 376 million people who speak English as their first language, and about the same number who have learnt it in addition to their mother tongue. There are said to be one billion people learning English now and about 80% of the information on the Internet is in English.
Is this a good thing, or a bad thing? Should we celebrate the fact that more and more of us can communicate, using a common language, across countries and cultures? Or should we worry about the dangers of “ mono-culturalism”, a world in which we all speak the same language, eat the same food and listen to the same music?
Does it matter if an increasing number of people speak the same language? I would have thought the other way around(相反) although I have never accepted the argument that if only we all understood each other better, there would be fewer wars. Ask the people of India ( where many of them speak at least some English) and Pakistan( the same situation with India) ...
If we all speak English, will we then all start eating McDonalds burgers? Surely not. If English becomes more dominant(占主导地位的), it will kill other languages? I doubt it. When I travel in Africa or Asia, I am always surprised by how many people can speak not only their own language but often one or more other related languages, as well as English and perhaps some French or German as well.
When we discussed this on Talking Point a couple of years ago, we received a wonderfully poetic email from a listener in Ireland. “The English language is a beautiful language. Maybe it’s like a rose,” he said. “But who would ever want their garden just full of roses?”
Well, I love roses, and I think they make a beautiful addition to any garden. But the way I see it, just by planting a few roses, you don’t necessarily need to pull out everything else. If more and more people want to plant English roses, that’s fine by me. By saying “ Ask the people of India... and Pakistan” ( in Paragraph 4) , the author is trying to show that_______.
| A．speaking the same language doesn’t necessarily bring peace |
| B．wars can destroy the relationship between two countries |
| C．English doesn’t kill other languages |
| D．English is widely used in the world |
What does “garden” in the last two paragraphs stand for（代表）?
| A．Language. | B．Family. | C．The world. | D．The universe. |
The author would probably agree that_________.
| A．it’s very hard to plant many kinds of flowers in a garden |
| B．it’s good for people from other countries to learn English |
| C．more and more people like to plant roses in their gardens |
| D．English is easier to learn than other languages |
This passage is mainly about________.
| A．why English has become a global language |
| B．how many people in the world speak English |
| C．how people in the world learn English as a foreign language |
| D．whether we need to worry about English being a world language |
第三部分：阅读理解（共阴节，40分）
第一节（共15小题；每小题2分，共30分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
|
|
|
If you know exactly what you want, the best way to get a job is to get specialized training. A recent report shows that companies like graduates in such fields as business and health care who can go to work immediately with very little on-the-job training.
That’s especially true of booming fields that are challenging for workers. At Cornell's School of Hotel Administration, for example, bachelor's degree graduates get an average of four or five job offers with salaries ranging from the high teens to the low 20s and plenty of chances for rapid advancement. Large companies especially like a background of formal education coupled with work experience. But in the long run, too much specialization does not pay off. Business, which has been flooded with MBAs, no longer considers the degree an automatic stamp of approval. The MBA may open doors and command a higher salary initially, but the impact of a degree washes out after five years.
As further evidence of the erosion of corporate faith in specialized degrees, Michigan State’s Scheetz cites a pattern in corporate hiring practices. Although companies tend to take on specialists as new hires, they often seek out generalists for middle and upper-level management. This sounds like a formal statement that you approve of the liberal-arts(文科) graduate. Time and again labor-market analysts mention a need for talents that liberal-arts majors are assumed to have: writing and communication skills, organizational skills, open-mindedness and adaptability, and the ability to analyze and solve problems. David Birch, manager of the Boston Red Sox, says that he does not hire anybody with an MBA or an engineering degree. “I hire only liberal-arts people because they have a less-than-canned way of doing things,” says Birch.
For a liberal – arts degree, students focus on some basic courses that include literature history, mathematics, economics, science, human behavior and a computer course or two. With these useful and important courses, you can feel free to specialize, “A liberal-arts degree coupled with an MBA or some other technical training is a very good combination in the marketplace,” says Scheetz.
67．The job market is in great need of people with ______________
A．special training in special fields B．a bachelor’s degree in education
C．formal schooling and work experience D．an MBA degree from top universities
68．The underlined sentence in Paragrph 2 means_________.
A．an MBA degree does not help in future promotion
B．MBA programs will not be as popular as they are now
C．people will not forget the degree the MBA graduates have got
D．most MBA programs fail to provide students with a foundation
69．David Birch says that he only hires liberal – arts people because___________.
A．they will follow others’ ways of solving problems
B．they can do better in bundling changing situations
C．they are well trained in a variety of specialized fields
D．they have attended special programs in management
70．The author supports the idea that__________________.
A．on – the – job training is less costly in the long run
B．formal schooling is less important than job training
C．specialists are more expensive to hire than generalists
D．generalists will do better than specialists in management
|
Why People Get Tattoos
Jack lay, quiet and unmoving, for thirty minutes while a stranger |
CP: Central Point P: Point Sp: Sub – point (次要点) C: Conclusion
While I was in 9 th grade, I built a circuit (电路装置) for the traffic system of our city. After getting the first prize. I got this valuable advice from my father; “Do whatever interests you, and don’t let the work challenge you, make sure you are challenging that work.”
I have always preferred the projects which are challenging and related to real life problems. I clearly remember building a shipping program several years ago. I divided the whole project into several small sections. When I understood it clearly, used my brainstorming skill on it, and gave some basic ideas. Then I asked my professor for help before jumping into coding (编码). At first, I did not know how to ask questions correctly and always asked the question “How do I do it?” As I kept working and discussed with my professor, I became more comfortable and those “how ”questions soon turned into “what if I do this and that” types of questions.
It took me four days to write the code. The desire to solve the problem kept me sleepless all nights brainstorming in even greater details. Every time I saw my program running smoothly, I exploded with joy. I still remember the last day of my work. I was getting some problem and didn’t know what to do. At that moment, a man came in to clean. He has headphones, and he was dancing while cleaning the room. Seeing this, I burst out laughing. That moment calmed me. I regained energy and interest and started to work again, and soon I fixed the problem.
My success in the project proved that breaking up a large problem into small parts could help find a possible solution. Discussing the problem with others was also very beneficial. Now I have gained the confidence to attempt any kind of project.
59．According to the passage, the writer was interested in___________
A．developing traffic systems B．doing challenging projects
C．winning great prizes D．writing different codes
60．The writer asked the question “how do I do it” at first because____________
A．he had no clear idea about his program B．he was too shy to express himself
C．he wanted to he understood easily D．he preferred this kind of question
61．We learn from the passage that the writer’s shipping program__________
A．would benefit people a lot B．was done together with others
C．was difficult and needed patience D．cost much money and energy
62．What would be the best title of the passage?
A．Do It Yourself B．No Pains, No Gains
C．Learning with interest D．Practice Makes Perfect
第三部分：阅读理解（共两节，40分）
第一节：（共15小题；每小题2分，共30分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
Congratulations on selecting our wireless mighty mouse. The mouse is of high quality. Only the scroll ball is visible at first glance, but it is actually a four – button mouse. At both sides, there are a couple of force – sensing buttons which can be programmed according to your need.
Setting up the Wireless Mighty Mouse
Put the batteries in the mouse first. Then pair the mouse and the computer. Setting up the mighty mouse is simple. You just need to install (安装) the software and turn the mouse on for it to get detected by the computer.
Using the Wireless Mighty Mouse
The mighty mouse has laser (激光) tracking technology, so you can use it on most surfaces. Another new invention is the 360 – degree scroll wheel. It is a multi – directional scroll wheel that allows you to scroll in all directions. The left and right buttons require just enough touch pressure to accept the input. Once you have set in up to your comfort, it functions smoothly without any problems. You can use either the left or the right button to click, doubleclick, and drag items. Either button can also be used to display an item’s short – cut menu. You can assign a function to the side buttons and the scroll ball, which also function as a button.
Cleaning Your Mouse and Scroll Ball
Use a cloth that’s been lightly moistened (湿) with water to clean. Don’t get moisture in any openings. If your mouse stops scrolling or if scrolling becomes rough, clean the mouse scroll ball. Turn the ball while cleaning for complete coverage.
56．You have to____________before setting up the mouse.
A．turn the scroll ball slightly B．clean the mouse with a cloth
C．check the software in the mouse D．connect the mouse and the computer
57．What can we learn about the wireless mighty mouse?
A．Its scroll wheel can move in all directions.
B．Different buttons have different functions.
C．Side buttons are more useful than left and right buttons.
D．Only the right button can display an icon’s short – cut menu.
58．The passage is probably taken from a (an)___________
A．textbook B．instruction C．research report D．scientific essay
